Flush receptacle.



W. J. NEWTON.

FLUSH RBGBPTAGLE,

APPLICATION FILED 111111.12, 1911.

,Patented Apr. 29, 1913.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

WJJ. NEWTON.

PLUSH REGEPTAGLE.

APPLIUATION FILED M1112, 1911.

1,060,01 1 Patented Apr. 29, 1913.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

faq

wwwa/aow' supplying the ting otally mount ally, if slidably mounted, thus uncovering UNITED STATES IPATENT oEEIoE.

WILLIAM 3. NEWTON, OF LYNBBOOK, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO METROPOLITAN ELECTRIC KFG. C0., A CORPORATION 0F NEW JERSEY. f

FLUSH BECEPTACLE. l

Bpecicatlon of Letters Patent. Patented Apr. 29, 11.)13,

Application led August 12, 1911. Serial No. 643,708.

To all 'whom it may c oncem.'

' Be it known that I, WILLIAM J. NEw'roN,

and the doors which effect the said closure preferabl presentin a plane and substantially un roken sur ace. In receptacles of.

this character as heretofore constructed means have been provided for partially closing the plug opemnfg in the cover plate, such means consisting o flaps or slides. In order to readily dis lace the said flaps or slides it has been ound necessary to provide openings therein to permit the introduction of a nger, or the like, whereby they may be engaged so that they may be swung outwardly substantially perpendlcularl to the cover plate, if pived), or separately thrust laterthe aperture into which the plug is to be inserted. These ty. es of` flush receptacles are objectionable or several reasons. In the first lace the plug cavity is not completely c osed owing to the necessity for er hole or holes in question, and in the pivoted flap type when the flaps are in their outermost osition, if the plug has been Withdrawn, t e plug cavity with its terminals remains exposed so that there is always a possibility of short circuiting occurrin by the inadvertent introduction of con ucting material into the said cavity. Furthermore it has been necessary in both the slide and flap constructions to separately close the slides or flaps after the plug has been removed, .and as has been above stated, if one neglects so to do, the plug cavit is leftopen. Furthermore in the pivot project from the surface'of the wall and are apt to tear the clothing of a. person passing by; the projecting fla-ps being also unsightly. My present invention not only eliminates two outwardly movable flap type the outstanding flaps these objectionable features, but does` away with the necessity of handling the cover flaps or doors at all, the opening and clos- 1ng of the flaps being substant-lall autoy.

matic, the mere introduction of the p ug suficing to uncover the plug aperture, and the sald aperture being automatically covered when the plug 1s removed.

A. further object of my invention is to ut1l1ze the iiaps 1n question not only as" covers for the lug aperture but also as guldes for .the p ug.

A still further object is to so form the plug that anyy inadvertent short circuiting across the plug ternnnals is practically obviatedpthe :said terminals being also protected from Inj ury by being substantially inclosed wlthin the plu These and other objects of my invention.

will be hereinafter set forth and more ticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings which forma part hereof and in which like reference characters designate like parts throughout the several views :f f. Figure l 1s a side elevation of one embodiment of my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan of the receptacle, the plug being removed. Fig. 3 1s a sectlon taken on the line III-III cf Fig. 2, the plug, however, being shown 1n position 1n the receptacle. Fig. Iiis a bottom view of the receptacle cover shown 4detached from the receptacle.' F 5 is a sectionof the said cover taken on the line II--II of Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a plan of the receptacle base, with the said cover `:removed therefrom. Fig. 7 is a bottom view of the receptacle base. Fig. 8 is a' bottom view of the plug, and Fig. 9 is a plan of the plug, the lug cap being removed.

T e base or body `of the receptacle may i Y.

be made of any suitable insulating material such as hard rubber, ber, or the like, the sald base havlng a plug receiving recess 2 therein, which recess is preferably sub` .stantially rectangular. Upwardly projecting from the b ottom of the said recess 1s a boss or projectlon 3 of preferably rectangular contour, as shown in Fig. 6. Upon the respective op osite sides of this bossl are the/ lgcontact ma `ng ends of .the termina-ls 4 Vand 5. These terminals are substantially the same in contour and the bases or bodies 6 thereof. are secured to 'the bottom of the recess 2 by means of the countersunk screws' ing sp for the current leads when` the receptacle base is placed in the usual conf Projections 15 arez also formed upon the respective end walls ofg the recessl 2 for the purposes hereinafterg noted. The insulatin base carries the usualj attachment ears 16 w ich are preferably of tainer .box in `the wall.

metal and having inwardlyT directed exten-' ing sions 19' which are apertured at 20 for the; reception 'of screws 21 of the cover plate; the said extensions being also secured to the' insulating base by means of studs 22, or the. like. The cover plate 17 is provided with a@ preferably rectangular aperture 23 which isi adapted to be closed by two flaps or doors 24 which have a bias for'terminalcovering position.

Referring to Figs. 2 and 4, it will be noted, that the underside of the cover plate has; grooves 25 milled vtherein and that each ofi the flaps 24 has a hinge pin 26 extending longitudinally through the body of the said@ Hap adjacent its edge. The projecting ex-'z 'tremities of the hingepins 26 are received.

in themespetive grooves 25, and they may. be secured 1n position in sald ooves by vburring over a wall of each of said grooves,

as at 27 which may readily be accomplished,y by means of a prick punch. Each flap 24;l has a preferably milled recess 28 in its une.

l-derside adapted for vthe reception of a light helical spring 29 through which extends the vcorresponding hinge apin 26; one extremity 30 of each spring 29 engaging the undersideg of the cover plate 17, and the other extrem?y ity 31 correspondingly engaging the und er-?t side .of the adjacent iap. Means are provided for preventing the spring from throw-,S the flap 4outwardly beyond the outer surface of the cover plate, such means preferably consisting of buttons 32 which may be secured to the underside of the respectiveg fiaps in any suitable manner; each of theseY 'buttons projecting vslightly beyond the edge;

of its' iap so as to engage the under surface of the cover plate. The cover plate may bei recessed as at 33 upon the underside thereof,l adjacent elther extremity so as to accommo-; date the ears' 16.

, As shown in Figs. 3, 8 and 9, the plug? for this-receptacle 1s of materially differentv orrey lc'essed as at 13 and diagonally opposlte outer 'edges of the receptacle are correspondingly c ut away as at 14; recesses 13 and 14 aiford-l construction from plugs of this character as heretofore made, in that the present plug .is hollow or recessed and the plug contacts are disposed within this recess rather than upon the outside of the plug. These contacts have'respectively been designated 34 and 35; both being L-shaped, and the longer legs of upper face of the plug proper is also prefeach L extending down along opposite walls of the recess 36 of the plug. The

erably recessed, two depressions 37 and 38 being provided, which are separated by a septum 39. The contacts or plug termina s are inserted into position from above;l the longer legs of said contacts extending through suitable slots which connect the respective recesses 37 and 38 with the recess 36, while the short legs of the said `ter- I minals, when in position, bear` against the bottoms of the respective recesses 37 and 38. Countersunk screws 40 .may be provided for holding said terminals fixedly in position. Plug terminal 34 is provided with a binding post or set screw 41, and terminal 35 is' correspondingly provided with a binding post 42. \The insulating plug is flanged as at 43 to limit its move ment 'into the receptacle and a dome- 4shaped cap 44, preferably of metal, serves to cover the upper extremity of the plug, the edges of sai cap engaging the edges of the flange 43,--and thecap being held in position by means of screws 45, or in any lother suitable manner. .The cap 44is apertured, preferably centrally thereof, for the reception of an insulating ring or thimble 46, the upper edge of the thimble being ianged, and the lower edgethereof being outwardl inserted into the cap in order to secure said parts together. I prefer also to provide a sheet of insulating material 47 within the cap, which ma be held in place by the flared after the thimble has been y laredvedge of t e thimble 46 in the manner shown in Fig.' 3. It will thus be seen that the lead wires 48 may be led through the opening in the thimble 46 and respectively connected tothe posts 41 and 42, .without possibility of the wire coming in contact with the metal cap. Furthermore, the septurn or wall 39 efectually prevents any possibility of shortcircuit, and as the exposed portions of the plug terminals are entirely within the recess 36 of the plu inadvertent short circuiting is practical y impossi- 'ble. The plug may hence be thrown down carelessl 1n contact with charged'conductors wit out danger. When the plugis in position in the receptacle, the flaps 24 are disposed as shown in Figs. 2, 4 and 5, and the cover plate presents an unbroken surface, the plug receivin recessof the receptacle being complete y covered, thereby obviating the likelihood of dust accumulating therein. Furthermore, since the exposed surface is entirely plane when the plug is removed there is no possibility of clothing, curtains, or the like being damaged by contact therewith, and as the flaps open inwardly there is at no time ossibility of damage to such articles. Wlien it is desired to insert the plug into the receptacle it is merely necessary to ush the end thereof against the flaps or oors 24, when the flaps will promptly open inwardl When the plug is being inserted these aps move inwardly until the end surfaces of their free extremities engage the vertical walls of the projections 15, thereby providing guides for the plug to insure its proper emplacement. As the plug moves inwardly, plug terminal 34 engages the receptacle terminal 4, while plug terminal 35, correspondingly engages the receptacle terminal 5. The upper eX- tremities of the terminals 4 and 5 are preferably slightly rounded as are also the downwardly projecting extremities of contacts 34 and 35, and terminals 4 and 5 are also preferably somewhat resilient so as to l insure effective contact. When the plug is in position current will be led in, let us say, through one of binding posts 11, and will then traverse the body 6 of terminal 4, passing thence through the upstanding le of terminal 4 into plug terminal 34, rom whence it may pass out via one of the wires 48 and through a lamp or other device returning to post 42 and flowing from thence down terminal 35 and into receptacle terminal 5, emerging from the receptacle at the remaining binding post 11 of the said receptacle.

I desire to direct attention to another advantageous feature of my novel receptacle. lVhen the plug is being removed, the flaps or doors again serve as guides until the plug has been withdrawn to a considerable extent. Thereafter the springs 2,9 urge the doors outwardly and as the innermost edges of the plug are well rounded as at 49,' there is a strong tendency to forcibly eject the plug during the last portion of the withdrawing movement so that if the plug be nearly withdrawn it will automatically be forced out of the way and the flaps 24 will spring closed. I wish also to point out the fact that since the flaps are under spring tension, they will serve as guides to steady and direct the inward movement of the plug whether they are provided with the back stops or not. For this reason they are peculiarly adapted Ato operate in connection with a lug having a chamber which must find and) pass over. a projection in the bottom of the receptacle in order to make contact.

, I am aware that many modifications of` my device may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention, and hence desire to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. An electrical appliance comprising a recessed base, an apertured cover plate therefor, inwardly swinging flaps normally closing the laperture in said plate and provided with means tending to move them to the closed position, means for limiting the inward swing of said flaps to substantially 90, electrical contacts within the recessed base and a plug carrying corresponding contacts and adapted to be guided into said recess by the fiaps when held at the inward limit of their swing.

2. An electrlcal appliance comprising ay recessed base provided therein with an outwardly projecting contact member, and a plug of insulating material having a cavity in its forward end in which is located a corresponding contact member, the contact member in the base being adapted to enter the cavity in the plug and make contact therein with the contact member in the plug, in combination with an apertured cover plate for said lbase having inwardly swinging spring pressed flaps, normally covering said aperture and adapted to guide said plug on its entry into said recessed base for the purpose set forth.

3. An electrical appliance comprising an insulating base having a recess in the bottom of which is a projection of insulating material, contacts located'on opposite sides of said projection, a plug of insulating material having an axial chamber in its forward end and provided in said chamber with contacts, said projection in the base, with its contacts, being adapted to enter the chamber in the plug when the latter is inserted into the recess of the base, and thereby bring the two sets of contacts into engagement with each other and an apertured cover plate having spring pressed flaps adapted to gulde the plu so that its chamber will ass over the projection of insulating materlal in the base, substantially as descrlbed.

In witness whereof, I subscribe my signature, in the presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM J. NEVTON. 

